Spring Break '11

Well, it's Sunday evening of spring break, and the twilight is just ending. It's nice how there's still some light in the day after 7:30. I guess the Vernal Equinox and Daylight Saving will do that. Anyway, it's the end of spring break, and while I didn't go anywhere fun like last year (Portland!), it was nice to kick back and relax for a bit.

On Monday morning, Heidi drove her parents back to the airport (they were visiting over the weekend) and picked up her boyfriend--he was to help her drive back to Minnesota. Anyway, that afternoon we headed downtown--I love going downtown!--and then over to the city center to visit the Space Needle, unquestionably our country's finest needle. I have seen the Space Needle up close a few times, but I've never gone up. It was pretty fun, but I feel no need to do it again. This is us:
That night we had a farewell dinner with another classmate. Then Alex was supposed to come over for some whiskey drinking, but his wife had other plans for him instead. So the three of us sat around watching Will & Grace.

I woke up early Tuesday morning to say goodbye to Heidi. Tear. We hugged goodbye, and she left, and I decided to watch Saved! and be lazy. Then I finished Ruth Reichl's memoir Comfort Me with Apples which I love. If you enjoy food writing and/or memoirs, I highly recommend it. All memoirs are ME-moirs, but hers is less egotistical than some. It's also not a memoir about a horrific childhood which are in excessive abundance (some are good, others not). It will also make you hungry! Later that night I watched the recent Star Trek movie, and the futon which we had just repaired, broke again. *sigh* Now all my naps will be at an angle.

On Wednesday, I decided to go see 127 Hours which was playing at the (three) dollar theater nearby. I hadn't caught the film during its first run since I had little desire to see a movie about a man trapped in a canyon who has to cut his own arm off, even though I heard all these good reviews. But I thought I can spare $3 bucks, and what else am I going to do? The film was good--I didn't think it was spectacular spectacular--and it was more entertaining that I thought it would be. The part where he cut off his arm was actually gorier than I expected, but I think the film is a tribute to the tenacity of the human spirit. Mostly, the red rock of Southern Utah made my heart ache a little bit.

On Thursday I finished reading Stuck Rubber Baby, a graphic novel by Howard Cruse. It's a semi-autobiographical coming-of-age story dealing with race and homosexuality in the Deep South in the 1960s. It was very interesting. That night, I went back to the dollar theater to see The Social Network again. It's such a good movie! and it made me upset all over that Tom Hooper won Best Director. What the what? Anyway, I liked it even better the second time I saw it--everything works so well: script, acting, score, directing, editing. Amazing.

(I don't remember what happened on Friday. Probably nothing.)

On Saturday, I finally decided to clean the kitchen, something which Heidi usually did. I love to cook, but I hate doing dishes which puts me in quite a predicament. Once it was clean, I decided to make stuff--like zucchini bread and a wilted spinach salad--quickly dirtying many more dishes. It's so Sisyphean.

This morning, I decided to make cream scones (with sugared ginger!) which by themselves are a justification for life. So good. And then I had to do more dishes. Then I went to visit Lillian in West Seattle, and we had tea and talked books. I have decided I need to read Oscar and Lucinda by Peter Carey, Empire Falls by Richard Russo, and Margaret Atwood. Everybody reads The Handmaid's Tale, but I'm really into the Bluebeard story (and variants), so I might read The Robber Bride instead. However, first I'm reading some steampunk books for my Nancy Pearl book club. There's Soulless by Gail Carriger which is a Victorian romance vampire/werewolf parasol book, and it's all a bit silly, but very popular. There's also The Time Machine by H.G. Wells which is very short. and weird. I also checked out The Manual of Detection by Jedediah Berry, but I'm not sure I'll have time to read it.

Anyway, I should start getting ready for bed soonish. This quarter I'm going to be working 9 to 12. So early--nine o'clock is when I got up last quarter, if I was feeling motivated. But it'll be good to get an early start on my day. or something.

A Day Late

Yesterday was World Poetry Day and you can read more about it at the UN's webpage. However, and perhaps more importantly, it was also my good friend Dain's birthday. This I forgot because I'm not all that good with dates and it's not on his Facebook profile. So, Happy Birthday, Dain!

And here are a couple of poems, both by Christina Rossetti, the good-natured and long-suffering sister of the more devilish Dante Gabriel Rossetti. Both contain hints of ecstasy, erotic and spiritual respectively, which is fitting since it is now officially spring and the weather has been gorgeous in Seattle today.

"A Birthday"

My heart is like a singing bird
     Whose nest is in a watered shoot:
My heart is like an apple tree
     Whose boughs are bent with thickset-fruit;
My heart is like a rainbow shell
     That paddles in the halcyon sea;
My heart is gladder than all these
     Because my love is come to me.

Raise my a dais of silk and down;
     Hang it with vair and purple dyes;
Carve in it doves and pomegranates,
     And peacocks with a hundred eyes;
Work it in gold and silver grapes,
     In leaves and silver fluers-dy-lys;
Because the birthday of my life,
     Is come, my love is come to me.

"Passing Away"

Passing away, saith the World, passing away;
Chances, beauty, and youth, sapped day by day;
Thy life never continueth in one stay.
Is the eye waxen dim, is the dark hair changing to grey
That hath won neither laurel nor bay?
I shall clothe myself in Spring and bud in May;
Thou, root-stricken, shalt not rebuild thy decay
On my bosom for aye.
Then I answered: Yea.

Passing away, saith my Soul, passing away;
With its burdens of fear and hope, of labour and play,
Hearken what the past doth witness and say;
Rust in thy gold, a moth is in thine array,
A canker is in thy bud, thy leaf must decay.
A midnight, at cockcrow, at morning, one certain day
Lo the Bridegroom shall come and shall not delay;
What thou and pray.
Then I answered: Yea.

Passing away, saith my God, passing away;
Winter passeth after the long delay;
New grapes on the vine, new figs on the tender spray,
Turtle calleth turtle in Heaven's May.
Though I tarry, wait for Me, trust Me, watch and pray:
Arise, come away, night is past and lo it is day,
My love, My sister, My spouse, thou shalt hear Me say.
Then I answered: Yea.

Winter Quarter

On Saturday, I submitted my final project for winter quarter, made a Long Island iced tea, and went on a shopping spree at Amazon.com. Now it's spring break, and after going on the Space Needle today(!) I am going to read a lot of books and watch a lot of movies. and sleep.

One of the things I learned this quarter is that I lack the organization and motivation to do well in online classes--three of my four classes were online. Yikes. Next quarter only one of three of my classes will be online. Much better.

One of my classes was an introduction to databases using Microsoft Access. I followed the exercises in the book using controlled data--data entry essentially--but that is not the same as learning how to really make/use a database. Not that the lecturer cared--I received credit for the class before I even submitted my final project.

Cataloging is an elective course in our program, though I think of it more as a core class. Cataloging is an essential skill for librarians. Do you know what's difficult--learning cataloging online in ten weeks. Half of our class failed the second assignment (thankfully not me), but I think it's good to fail an assignment every now and then (like I did last year)--it builds character. In my experience, physical description and subject cataloging are arts of sorts, but they make sense. However, I have no idea how to Cutter a number--but nobody assigns numbers anymore. It was a hard class, and I'm glad it's over, but I'm also glad I took it.

I took Government Publications because Meagan was taking it, and there weren't really any other classes that sounded good. Then Meagan dropped the class. Excellent. Especially since it required a lot of work, and I just wanted it to be a filler class. The weekly assignments weren't too bad, but the final project was more involved. First we did a poster session--it was like science fair!--giving the spiel on our projects. Mine was about film censorship and the government--mostly told through Supreme Court cases. In 1915 the Mutual decision legitimized the prior restraint imposed on films by local and state censoring boards. In 1951 the so-called Miracle Case reversed the Mutual decision and prior restraint (mostly). Then I had to write a rather long paper about it all. Blerg. My mantra in that class was "Credit, No Credit" and I got credit.

Then there was Portfolio--it was my culminating experience in lieu of a thesis, research, or capstone project. It's new, and they're still working out the kinks which means the whole thing was a bit of a mess. At the end of eight weeks, I submitted my final draft, and did not receive credit. So I had two more works to revise it. This time I did receive credit, but the professors still had quite a few suggestions. Here is what I have so far.

At this point, I have completed all my core course, cataloging, and my culminating experience. Hooray. So for spring quarter, I am taking Nancy Pearl's reader's advisory course (awesome sauce!), the history of recorded information (a promising humanities-style class), and information tech systems (a promising practical management course). I have the highest hopes that it will be a fairly easy and enjoyable end to grad school, which is good because now I need to start looking for a job. Not excited. But for now, there is spring break. Now if we could just get some spring weather.

Herstory

As you should all know, March is Women's History Month, but in case you did not know that, Will Forte shares the amazing richness and depth of women's herstory on Saturday Night Live:

Good job, women. Indeed.

For March, the lovely ladies over at On How to be Lovely are celebrating women. Go join them! It was there that I learned that TV Squad was paying tribute to the 100 Most Memorable Female TV Characters. zOMG! I love TV and female characters! Not all of these characters are role models or feminist-approved, but I think they are largely memorable. Some of my favorites include Karen Walker, Lorelai Gilmore, Starbuck, Sydney Bristow, Joan Harris, C.J. Cregg, Liz Lemon, Veronica Mars, and Laura Roslin. Good job, TV.

Just today, The Critical Condition and Low Resolution revisited Alanis Morissette's debut, diamond-certified, album of 90s amazingness, Jagged Little Pill, on its 15th anniversary (of what I'm not entirely clear since it was released in 1995). I would not hear Alanis wailing for several more years since at the time I was nine-years-old and did not know what pop music was. But she was still my first radio love, because even seven+ years later Ms. Morissette was still getting a lot of radio play on Star 102.7. However, it wasn't until my freshman year in college that I bought the CD and listened to it in the car ALL THE TIME. So rest assured, Alanis was there to guide me through angsty teen times with girl power. Time to re-listen. Good job, Canada.

It would not be until later in college that I would be introduced to Tori Amos. You know how Emma Thompson, in Love Actually, says that Joni Mitchell taught her husband's cold, English wife to feel and that true love lasts a lifetime. That is Tori for me. And not to diss Alanis, but Tori is the better musician and feminist. Good job, Tori. and Joni.

In case you want something meatier for March than corned beef, you should check out the stylized HBO film Iron Jawed Angels which recounts how activists Alice Paul and Lucy Burns formed the National Women's Party and petitioned for national suffrage. The film was written, directed, and produced by women and features a nearly all female main cast, including the delectable Angelica Huston. It's kind of amazing that less than 100 years ago, women didn't have the right to vote--and how hard it was to get it. Good job, ladies. and HBO.

As much as the women's rights have been enlarged, equal pay is still not a reality and the glass ceiling remains very real. There's still a lot to do--for both women and men. How are you celebrating women's history month?

Silly Rabbit

This quarter has kinda been like the final scenes of Kill Bill, Vol. 1--specifically where the Bride kills O-Ren's guards and Gogo. This quarter was hard, but I was laying waste to my assignments--and I got pretty beat up myself. And then it was almost over, and I was like, yeah! this quarter's done. So I relaxed for a bit, and then the Crazy 88 showed up, and I realized my final projects are going to be more involved than I thought. But for a second there, I really thought it was going to be that "easy." So this week I have to go collect myself some arms and then scalp a Tokyo crime boss. Wish me luck!

This and That

Hello readers!

It's been awhile. School has been punishing, but it's the penultimate week of the quarter, and the finish line is in sight. I cannot wait for spring break, even though that's when Heidi (my roommate) is leaving me. She decided to graduate a quarter early. Lame sauce. Speaking of spring, I hope it comes here soon. Last year, Seattle had the warmest January on record and it was spring all winter. This year winter has been (relatively) brutal--as it has been across the country, and I really shouldn't bitch since I haven't had to deal with massive blizzards. But I think we're all tired of the winter and are looking forward to warmer, sunnier days.

Oscar thoughts: I thought the intro video was really funny and well done. And then it all went downhill from there. James Franco was baked and had no idea where he was--he didn't even have facial expressions! I thought Anne Hathaway was adorable--she's a huge drama nerd but so charming. If you didn't fall in love with her in The Princess Diaries, I can see that she might be off-putting. And she did have to try a bit hard, but only because her co-host gave her nothing. There were no real surprise winners and no interesting speeches. (Do you know who always gives amazing acceptance speeches--Meryl Streep.) What to make of Melissa Leo though. That ad campaign was a mistake, and that speech was all over the place. She's kind of been turning me off lately. I think she took the whole thing a bit too seriously. It was a good performance though. Jacki Weaver also had an amazing performance, and I'm thoroughly delighted by her. I love Natalie, but I really wanted The Bening to win.

I was happy that The Social Network nabbed a few prizes including score, editing, and screenplay. I can't believe Tom Hooper won director--all of the shots in The King's Speech were good, but none of them were interesting. All the other directors were more deserving not only for camerawork but in all the ways they brought the story to life. All of the songs this year were terrible. You don't get Florence Welch to do 30 seconds of I don't even know what that was. Let her run around on stilettos and belt something fun. They should have nominated Cher--it would have made everything more interesting. Finally the most interesting part of the Oscars which sadly didn't make it to TV--Josh Brolin and Javiar Bardem soft-shoe and exchange a playful kiss:

image source

New Subject--Congress: So, I don't want to get into it too much because it makes me so angry, but is Congress declaring a war on the poor and women? A vicious, full-out attack to cut services (thank god we extended the Bush tax cuts) and regress a good 50+ years. Thoughts, comments? Stay classy, congress.

I hope to start blogging more this month as this awful quarter finally ends, and a hopefully better quarter begins.